Charting the Way Forward

Everyone’s favorite Latino expert Chuck Rocha has some news: the old adage that ‘Latinos are not a monolith’ might actually be a lot less true this cycle! Trump has uniformly ticked off Latinos across the country, and Republicans will bear the brunt of that ire, says Chuck. The real question now is whether Democrats can figure out how to keep Latinos in their corner. Join us for the second installment of our Closing Argument series this month, celebrating two years of Charting The Way Forward!

Today we're dropping the first episode of our "Closing Argument" series celebrating TWO YEARS of Charting The Way Forward. First up: Indivisible's Leah Greenberg on The Grassroots and the largest early vote mobilization in history! Plus—her closing arguments are 🔥🔥. Jenifer Fernandez Ancona and Dan Ancona join host Kerry Eleveld for this truly inspiring conversation. We'll be dropping special episodes every Thursday this month, so stay tuned!

As Ian Bassin, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Protect Democracy, said on this week's episode, few people would disagree that we're in a crisis of democracy — but we're also in a crisis of spirit. And yet, it may be the crisis that precedes the opportunity. Because if we can, in fact, Protect our Democracy, we can start implementing real reforms to make sure our country rewards regular people who have good values, not just people who have good financial positions. We have a big fight ahead—but in the past, it has been moments of great conflict that have produced the most positive change. 

Head to protectdemocracy.org to check out more of Ian's work, including a list of easy, important actions you can take to help ensure our elections are free and fair.

This week, the Way team is in the weeds preparing for the final election day push—so we're revisiting a show from a couple months back with Luke Martin, diving into tough terrain for Dems with innovative battleground polling. Last week, we looked at the Part 2 of this research with Celinda Lake (give it a listen if you haven't already!), so here is a look back at the foundation on which we've built the ad work we're doing today.

Way to Win worked with Impact Research and Lake Research to zero in on messages that move gettable voters in conservative South and Southwest battleground states and districts. Trump’s catastrophic failure on the economy has unlocked the door for Dems; with focus and effort, they may be able to open it. Rising star pollster Luke Martin and Consultant of Destiny™️ Dan Ancona dig in with host Kerry Eleveld.

This week, we are joined by pollster extraordinaire, friend of the pod, and President and Founder of Lake Research Partners, Celinda Lake, to discuss the rapidly shifting electorate in the South and Southwest, and just how effective our most recent message testing has proven to be at shifting voter sentiment. With less than 8 weeks left until the Midterm elections, the decisions we make now could make or break some of the most critical races of the cycle. Listen in as we drill down on the messages that will position Democrats to maximize their gains this November.

Black voters are poised to make the difference this cycle between Democrats regaining control of the Senate and falling just short. From the Sunbelt states of Texas, Georgia, and Mississippi all the way north to Michigan, Democrats' path to the majority runs through Black voter engagement and persuasion. Terrance Woodbury, founding partner and CEO of HIT Strategies, joins us to share his insights about "the Trump of it all," tying Paxton to pedophiles, and other closing arguments Democrats should be making to persuade Black voters to go to the polls.

Could the Mississippi Senate race also possibly, somehow, be in play this cycle? According to new polling, ABSOLUTELY. Mississippi NAACP Executive Director Charles Taylor, the ultimate organizer-meets-consulant, joins us to share deep insights from the front lines of a state that should not be written off either this cycle or in cycles to come. Way to Win President Tory Gavito, Strategic Advisor Joe Hamill also join host Kerry Eleveld.

More wealthy people than you'd think are funding movements for stopping fascism and enacting fundamental, structural change in our society. Organizer Michael Gast has been on the front lines of this work and shares his wealth of knowledge on the deep history of these kinds of actions with Way to Win President Tory Gavito and host Kerry Eleveld.

Neither the Bernie left nor the right wing Dems have the right path to persuading less engaged voters, but a lot of Dems and their campaigns are starting to get this right in a big way anyway. Way to Win Executive Director Tory Gavito, Chief Strategy Officer Jenifer Ancona and research consultant Dan Ancona join host Kerry Eleveld to discuss midterm results and clips that lie along the continuum from god-tier to cringe.

Special guest Ben Wikler, former chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, joins Charting The Way Forward this week to talk to host Kerry Eleveld about his new book, "This is The Plan: How to End America's Meltdown and Save Democracy," and the role every one of us can play in building a better American future. Wikler brings a mix of hope and humor to this conversation about his grand vision for saving democracy. You won't want to miss it!